Chocolate Cherry Chia Nut-Free Granola [Recipe Redux]

As soon as I saw the theme for this month’s Recipe Redux, I knew I had only two choices:

Break out the ‘oatmeal pot’ that I stole inherited from Mama Smart and make some sort of epic oat breakfast…

…or pull Mama Smart’s thrift store ‘granola pan’from its hidden location in the cupboard–because it could never be accidentally used to bake anything else–and turn that idea of oatmeal into a batch of something snackworthy.

I’ve blogged about this pan before (and no, I’m not going to look through the four years of posts to find the moments), but I am thoroughly convinced that no granola is ever as good as that baked in this pan.

And although Mama Smart’s granola was fairly traditional (and featured my favorite ‘yes I will pick them all out’ chopped date pieces)…

…the one I made for this month’s Recipe Redux features a rather surprising ingredient.

In addition to cocoa krispies, pebbles, or the fancy schmancy all-natural version I used, there are crunchy chia seeds stirred into the mix.

This granola is sweetened (mainly) with cherry-based preserves melted a bit in the microwave with some coconut oil–

–but after stirring and baking and stirring some more–

–dried cherries are added for a little pop of tartness.

Melting dark chocolate chips into the whole mess takes it from good, to addictive.

It’s good on oatmeal…

…and stirred into a smoothie.

But, just a warning:

Make sure you check your teeth before you leave the house, or everyone you encounter will see the chia seed sign of spooning the stuff into your mouth for snack time.